Brussels, 11 April 2024 - EuropaBio notes the European Parliament’s plenary vote on the revision of the EU General Pharmaceutical Legislation (GPL) while continuing to advocate for a more ambitious vision for the future of biotech innovation in Europe.

Although acknowledging some improvements to the proposals, the biotech industry is concerned the voted texts will not sufficiently contribute to the EU’s leadership ambition in biotechnology. The Parliament’s voted version of the GPL will not be positive on Europe’s biotech ecosystem and most likely will lead to decreased investment potential for European innovation, reduced innovation maturation through collaboration and partnership. More important, it will also, probably lead to decreased and delayed patients access to innovative treatments when compared to other regions.

Commenting on the vote, Dr Claire Skentelbery, Director General of EuropaBio said: “The GPL does not match the Commission’s ambition for biotech as a key enabler of our economic security and growth for the future. We call for a dialogue with the Council aimed at improving the proposals. We remain hopeful that the Member States will consider the GPL as a significant legislative opportunity to power the growth of one of the four critical technologies to strengthen Europe’s future.”

Healthcare biotech is increasingly the primary source of new therapies, bringing previously untreatable diseases within reach and transitioning from ‘manage’ to ‘cure’ with improvements to quality of life, freeing patients, families, and healthcare systems. To achieve our common ambitions, the Member States need now to redress several provisions to protect the value of European biotech innovation and ensure European patients have timely access to medicines with high therapeutic value.

EuropaBio is committed to work with policymakers and all interested parties of the life sciences ecosystem. We remain convinced that the GPL is an opportunity to improve on the current regulatory framework and give the EU the effective tools to once again be an innovation leader and secure faster access to innovative medicines for the European patients.